susquehanna sidetrackssusquehannanmra.org/newsletters/2019/ss0619.pdf · 2 4x8 layouts and various...

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SUSQUEHANNA SIDETRACKS

An Official Publication of the Susquehanna Division,

Mid-Eastern Region of the NMRA

Vol 27 No. 3

Sidetracks / Susquehanna Division / NMRA May/June 2019

Drone photo taken by Tedd Pounds near Marysville, Pa

Superintendents

Desk page 2

Director Candi-

dates/ballot page 3

Mid-Eastern Re-

gion Information

page 9

AP Awards 3

2019 Calendar

Page14

Members Section

Page 17

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From the Superintendent’s Desk – Tim Himmelberger

It is May and that means it is time for our Division Director election. With three of our current Directors deciding

not to run again it made for a challenging time to work on a slate of candidates. After a lot of conversations and

emails we have come up with five individuals who are running for the four positions. Two of which have accepted

positions with the MER. Personally, I feel that we have an excellent field of candidates. Please see the article on

page 03 with their bios and the procedures for voting. A big thank you to Bob Charles for being our election offi-

cial. Now the challenge is picking out four to vote for.

May 4th was a day to remember. We have not had the event follow up meeting yet, but Chris Vera has informed us

that there were over 200 riders on the trolley. This was excellent exposure for the Division and the hobby in gen-

eral. Unfortunately, it will be a while until we see if there has been an uptick in new members signing up. I re-

ceived many positive comments during the day. Yes, I had a shifter sandwich and mine was very tasty.

With all the effort going into the May event the other ideas for additional events for the summer months fell through. Unfortunately, it was the same individuals who were working on the Columbia event. Preliminary work has begun for a more traditional event in August. The event will be on August 17th in the Denver area. We are planning on two clinics along with the model showcase in the morning and as of now 4 layouts will be open.

As soon as this is finalized, we will do an email blast so you can plan. Also, I hope to have the details for the July Sidetracks. So, stay tuned.

I am also excited that our AP program continues to show real progress. There were four certificates presented at

Columbia. At last year’s convention I took the judging training. They had enough judges there, so I did not get to

help judge. However, at the February meeting I did help judge. The experience was very enlightening. You gain

an understanding of how points are awarded and what it is that will help you make a model that will make the grade.

Looking ahead this September we will again be joining in sponsoring Mainline Hobbies open house tour. Then in

October 10 – 13, the MER regional convention will be in King of Prussia. Later in October 25 – 26, is the annual

LSOP or operate until you drop. If you ever wondered what people are talking about when they say operations, this

is your chance to find out. The first three weekends in November is our annual division wide layout tour. So, mark

your calendars and make plans for some great modeling activities.

Let me close by saying that I know we are heading into summer. Which typically means that model railroad pro-jects tend to get neglected. Let’s be honest we all want to be outside and enjoying the good summer weather. But

there are those occasional rainy days which are good for tackling a small project or two.


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Board of Directors Election Information


It’s May which means it’s time to elect four Division Board of Directors (BOD) members for the next two years: July 1, 2019 – June 30, 2021. Our Division by-laws establish a seven-member BOD - three elected Officers (Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, and Chief Clerk), and four at-large Directors. At-Large Directors are elected to a two-year term in odd-numbered years and hold office from July 1of that year to June 30 of the follow-ing second year. The three BOD Officers are elected to two-year terms in even numbered years with our current officers serving the term July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2020. The five Director candidates and their bio-sketches are presented below in alphabetical order. Their email ad-dresses are provided if you would like to contact them. Restating the ballot guidance: you can only vote for four candidates. Director Candidate Bio-Sketches (in alphabetical order) Dennis Blank ([email protected]) I've had a fascination with trains since the age of 2, even before I could say the word train.

I've been in the Susquehanna Division since January 2013, when I decided to rejoin the NMRA after a many year

absence.

I would like to be more involved with the Susquehanna Division and I thought what better way than to run for a

director’s position in the division.

I have a few ideas for more division meets and field trips for my fellow division members to partake in.

James Mattern ([email protected]) I’ve been to many of your homes where you were gracious enough to open your house for an open house or host an operating session. I’ve gotten countless ideas from these visits, and I thank you. Operating sessions are a place where I really enjoy the camaraderie of getting together to run trains. With your support in voting for James Mat-tern, I want our division to continue to share ideas with open houses and operating sessions and where we can share our affinity for trains together. Be it through our traditional meets, social media, or any outlet that can help our members grow in this hobby. I know I want to continue to grow, and can’t think of a better way than volun-teering and serving as a director for the division. My modeling and prototype interest is with the short line Cornwall Railroad. I’ve been modeling this Pennsylva-nia Iron Ore hauler since 1992. I also have an interest in the Reading, and a slight interest in the Pennsylvania Railroad. I’m currently working on building the Cornwall Railroad Shops that were located in West Lebanon in HO scale, and numerous other modeling projects.

mailto:[email protected]

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Pat Mulroney ([email protected])

My name is Pat Mulroney and I am currently serving as a Board Member for the Susquehanna Div. I would like to

have your support to continue in that position as I feel I can contribute to the Div. and I enjoy working with the

members and helping the Div. grow. I started in model railroading around 1950, after my brother returned from

WWll. He had been in HO modeling before going to war and after returning home and marrying he needed an ex-

cuse to get back into the hobby and apparently, I was it. He started me off with a roll of fiber ties, a bundle of brass

rail, some spikes and a track gauge. Derailments were many and successful loops with the Varney Dockside were

few and even fewer with the NYC Hudson. I continued until High School days when I discovered cars and fe-

males.

After getting married and starting a family my wife bought me a little camel back switcher of dubious origin one

Christmas and we proceeded to have a loop around the tree at Christmastime. That continued until I was in my

40’s, the kids were older, and I started to get more serious about modeling. I really love the hobby and while I’m

far from a MMR I enjoy my time in the basement, working on scenery, lighting, and trying to build a railroad that

is operations friendly even though I have a long way to go before I reach that point. I’d appreciate your vote as I

have enjoyed serving in this capacity this past term. Thank you

Phil Peters ([email protected] ) My name is Phil Peters. I am running for director. As a Life Member I have attended many national and regional

conventions over the years and have benefited greatly from the knowledge of the members who shared their expe-

rience. I bring a fresh perspective to working with the members of our division and am looking forward to helping

us further the enjoyment of our hobby.

I guess I have always enjoyed trains. My father put up a large scenicked American Flyer layout that covered one

entire wall of the basement and included every animated feature available (he was an electrical engineer, go fig-

ure!) We moved on to HO and I finally settled on N scale when I got my first basement/house in the mid-sixties. I

have built several layouts over the years and just recently added a large extension to my current Hanover Valley

Railroad which occupies most of a 13’ x 26’ room. I also operate on several HO layouts in the area.

I subscribe to the belief that good modeling is our goal and that scale is the means we use to achieve it. I am look-ing forward to working with the division and helping us move forward. Thank you for your consideration.

Jeff Thompson ([email protected]) Hi – I started my interest in trains at the age of 3 when my dad set up an American Flyer layout in our basement. I

have those trains today. Through my formative years I took the trains out (usually at Christmas) and set them up in

my bedroom. Girls, boats, cars and school got in the way and the trains went by the wayside until the Bi-

Centennial brought us Tyco sets decorated for the same. I was back. I’ve dabbled in the hobby since. Subscribed to

Model Railroader, Railroad Model Craftsman and joined the NMRA. Then along came Bob Martin who invited

me to an Ops session in 2007. Now I’m really hooked.

2 4x8 layouts and various modeling projects, ops sessions, volunteer for the Susquehannock event 2 years ago co-

ordinating clinic activities with Barry Schmitt and a trip to the Fine Scales Expo in Altoona. Train shows – Gil-

bertsville, Timonium and managed to get to Milwaukee for Trainfest. I’m not exactly what you’d call an MMR,

but I am learning. My current job keeps me way busier than it should which cuts into my modeling time. That is

changing.

Tim asked me to step up for this position. I’m a ‘newbie’ and, I’m a hard worker.




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Board of Directors Ballot

NMRA SUSQUEHANNA DIVISION 11 (MER) 2019 DIRECTOR BALLOT Your BOD has approved electronic (email) voting for this election cycle in addition to traditional USPS ballot mail-

ing. You do not have to use the below ballot form – use whatever format works best for you. Send your ballot to

Bob Charles, at [email protected] or Bob Charles, c/o NMRA, 115 Winfield Drive, Camp Hill, PA 17011-1348.

Bob will confirm every received ballot with either an email or post card response based on your delivery mode.

Deadline for receipt by either delivery method is June 16, 2019. Results will be presented in the July Sidetracks.

ONLY VOTE FOR FOUR (4) CANDIDATES _____ Denis Blank _____ James Mattern _____ Pat Mulroney _____Phil Peters _____ Jeff Thompson ______________________________________________ Below Only To Notify Of Ballot Receipt Your Name (print): ______________________ Email Address: _________________________ Home Address (if sent by USPS): __________ _____________________________________ (Questions – call Tim Himmelberger at 717-454-8033)

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Sidetracks Editor Position

The last couple of issues have been a struggle to get put together and out to the membership. I was promoted

in January of 2018, as a result my travel has increased and my free time has decreased.

With that said we are looking for someone to take the reins of Sidetracks.

I currently create the newsletter using Microsoft Publisher, I have found it is very easy to use vs the Mi-

crosoft Word format I received it in. Publisher is straight forward and fairly easy to use, don’t worry if you don’t have a copy. There are funds available from the NMRA to purchase a copy of any software desired.

If you are interested, please let us know.

Thanks

Tedd

On behalf of the entire Susquehanna Division I want to personally thank Tedd for the excellent job he has done as the editor of Sidetracks. We all to well understand his current employment situation makes it very difficult to put together the newsletter in a timely manner. Which means we now have some big shoes to fill. I remember thinking the same thing when Ron Smith moved A little over two years ago and then Tedd stepped forward and did an outstanding job. We are now looking for our next editor to step forward.

Thanks, Tim

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Have you visited the NMRA website? As a member you have access to a world of information on our hobby! I

have included just one item that is available to each of us with our membership.

HELP WANTED: Archivist

Jack Dziadul, MER Director

[email protected]

919-721-8757

February 14, 2019

The Mid-Eastern Region’s position of Archivist will become vacant effective April 1, 2019 due to the retirement of

Chris Conaway. We are seeking Chris’ replacement for this volunteer position.

The Archivist is responsible for maintaining the historical records belonging to the Mid-Eastern Region. These

would include MER meeting agendas and minutes, budgets and financial reports, copies of The Local as well as

Division newsletters, etc.

Specific responsibilities:

1. The archivist maintains an electronic copy of the archives and updates it as necessary. At the end of each year,

the Archivist makes a copy to a CD for the MER President and the MER Business Manager.

2. Periodically writes a short column for The Local (i.e., In the Region 30 Years Ago).

3. Prepares an annual budget request to cover anticipated Archivist expenses, if any, for the coming year.

For those participating in the Achievement Program and working toward their Association Volunteer Certificate

and MMR, the Archivist position is a quick way to accumulate required volunteer time units. Please contact MER

Director Jack Dziadul with any questions or expressions of interest.

https://nmra.org/videos/9-new-videos-model-railroader-video-plus


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Second Section Tedd Pounds

Susquehanna Sidetracks

Official Newsletter of the Susquehanna Division

Mid‐Eastern Region, NMRA 380 Taylor Drive, York, PA 17404

Contributing to Susquehanna Sidetracks

Sidetracks welcomes contributions from the Division membership. Letters, articles, photos and other items

may be sent to the Editor at the e‐mail address listed be-low or the street address above. Deadline for submission for the next issue is June 22, 2019 formatted in Times New Roman font 12.

Board of Directors

2018-2020 2017-2019

Committee Chairman

Achievement Program Training Chairman

Chairman

Robert Charles, MMR Alan Mende [email protected] [email protected]

Model Showcase Program Sidetracks Editor

Chairman

John Wissinger, MMR Tedd Pounds [email protected] [email protected]

Second Section – Tedd Pounds

Hello everyone!

I encourage all members to consider submitting an arti-cle or some photos of your layout or modeling projects to our newsletter. Do you have something that you have discovered that may be of interest to others? Put something on paper, include a few pictures and we will make it work. Thanks!

Tedd


Membership Information

Susquehanna Division website:

www.susquehannanmra.org

Mid‐Eastern Region website:

www.mer.nmra.com

National Model Railroad Association

8414 Gulf View Drive, Suite A & B

Soddy Daisy, TN 37379‐2200

www.nmra.org

Superintendent Director

Tim Himmelberger Dave Collison [email protected]

[email protected]

Asst. Superintendent Director

Tedd Pounds Lee Rainey [email protected] [email protected]

Chief Clerk Director

Paul Tice Pat Mulrooney [email protected]

[email protected]

Director Director/Membership

Barry Schmitt Chairman [email protected] Howard Oakes

[email protected]

NEW MEMBERS

Mark Hagy Sunbury PA

John King Analomink PA

Jeff Krause Macungie PA

Paul Sternitzke Hallstead PA





http://www.nmra.org








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Invitation to Authors and Photographers

Jack Dziadul, Director

Mid-Eastern Region

Do you have a modeling tip, a how-to article, a step-by-step scratch-build, kit-bash, or kit build to share with your

1,800 friends in the Mid-Eastern Region? Perhaps you have photo exhibits of a recent train show, from a layout

tour, or of an operating session. With our e-Local, we have an expanded page count available to publish your con-

tribution and sharp color to give some pop to your photographs.

Among our Region’s objectives are:

Expand interest in and publicize the hobby of model railroading

Promote membership growth (and retention)

Support the National Achievement Program

Each member can play a role in achieving these objectives.

We have a great deal of talent in the MER as evidenced by so many Master Model Railroaders in the Region, and in

the variety of high-quality contest entries at our conventions. Let us all share those talents more broadly.

For those participating in the Achievement Program and working toward their Railroad Author Certificate and

MMR, the Region and Division level requirements below are excerpted from the NMRA web site. Refer to

www.nmra.org Education tab for the full statement of requirements that encompass clinics, etc.

To qualify for this certificate, you must:

1. Prepare and submit material on any of the following subjects: Model Railroading. Prototype Railroading, Applicable to Modeling. NMRA Administration (e.g. Officers or Committee Reports)

The material being claimed must be the work of the author, photographer, artist, draftsperson, etc. applying for

the certificate. A total of forty-two (42) points must be earned. This is material that appears in printed media,

such as newsletters and may include text, photographs, drawings, etc. Material that has been published or ac-

cepted for publication may be claimed. A copy of the published material or of the acceptance receipt from the

publication must be submitted as proof.

Item Region Division

Article or Column 2 1

Photos or Art Work 2 1

Scale Drawing of Proto-type

4 2

Scale Drawing of Track Plan

2 1

Mid-Eastern Region Information


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A "page" is approximately 1200 words. Credit may be claimed for partial pages down to quarter pages. No more than half of the total required points (21) may be claimed for Division or 100% NMRA Club publica-

tions. You will note that your article does not need to actually even be published before submitting your Region level points for credit. You only need certification from the Editor that your work has been accepted for publication. For guidance or questions pertaining to the Achievement Program, please contact Region AP Coordinator Dave Chance or your Division AP Coordinator.

What is the next step? Submit your article, photographs or inquiries to Editor Clint Hyde ([email protected]) with a copy to Jack Dziadul ([email protected]). Other information includ-ing the publication schedule and deadlines can be found in The Local.




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Achievement Program Awards

Tim Himmelberger receives his

Association Volunteer Certificate

Brian Kampschroer receiving his

Scenery AP certificate

Alan Mende receiving his

Structures AP certificate

Scott Unger also earned His scenery AP certificate but was not present.

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2019 Division Calendar of Events

August 17— Event planning stages, will be held in Denver, Pa.

September 16 – 17, Mainline Hobby Open House Weekend

October 10 – 13, King of Prussia, PA, MER Convention, Philadelphia Division

Oct 25 - 26, LSOP

Nov 4 – 5, 11 – 12, 18 – 19 Section wide Open House Tour

We feel that we have put together an interesting program plan for this year. There are many of the

events that have been part of our program in the past and have been very popular. Also, some interest-

ing new ones. Some items need to have the details completed. So, keep a lookout in future Sidetracks

for details as they come available. Please note that the italicized items are not Susquehanna Division

events but are very popular with many Division members. Also, I would like to call your attention to

our web page. Wayne Betty has posted a listing of Mid-Atlantic Train Shows for 2019.

Tim Himmelberger


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One Masonic Drive

Elizabethtown, Pa 17022

Phone 717-361-5180

Open Houses the first weekend

monthly Sept thru April

Sat-Sun 2 –4 PM

Extra times at Christmas

Masonic Village & Elizabethtown

Model RR Club

Meets 7:30 PM First Tuesday

Sept—June

PIKE ADS

Pike Ads are available for $10 for a 6- issue year. For information about placing an ad, please contact Tedd Pounds at [email protected]



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Members Section


Introducing a new section to our newsletter, if you have a Youtube page, Facebook page for your railroad, or a blog

please consider including a link to it here.

Also, it has been suggested we have a classified section for our members to post items that are searching for new

homes.

Please submit your items to the editor in an email with a photo or two for inclusion in our newsletter.

Scott Unger’s Chessie System Pa Dvision Jerry Britton’s Pennsylvania RR Middle Division in HO

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxO1p5LEO5V9lD1PkoCHV3Q

https://www.facebook.com/prrmiddledivision/

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PLEASE SUPPORT OUR BUSINESS SPONSERS!

The Station

213 Ninth Street New Cumberland, PA Phone: 717-774-7096

Please call for directions

Open Monday-Friday 10 AM to 5 PM

Saturday 10 AM to 4 PM

TRAINS EXCLUSIVELY

ALL GAUGES (G-O-027-HO-N-Z)

Sales & Service


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PLEASE SUPPORT OUR BUSINESS SPONSERS!

MAINLINE HOBBY SUPPLY

15066 Buchanan Trail East Blue Ridge Summit PA 17214

(717) 794-2860 Monday-Friday 10-6

Saturday 10-5 Sunday 1-5

www.mainlinehobby.net

Serving the hobby for over 25 years!!

You’re one-stop source for all your model railroading needs.

From Z to O, from DCC to Detail Parts, we have it all!

e-mail: [email protected]


http://www.mainlinehobby.net


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Susquehanna Sidetracks

Official publication of the Susquehanna Division 11 Of the National Model Railroad Association 380 Taylor Drive York, Pa 17404


susquehanna sidetrackssusquehannanmra.org/newsletters/2019/ss0619.pdf · 2 4x8 layouts and various...

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